OSLO, NORWAY and SHENZHEN, CHINA - 31 October 2016- Biometric tech company Zwipe and Kuang-Chi establishes joint venture to create commercial platform in China for Zwipe's ground-breaking biometric authentication technology, the first and only fingerprint technology to operate without batteries.

Zwipe. a biometric tech company and a global leader in biometric authentication technology, today announced an agreement to form a joint venture with China-based, high-tech company Kuang-Chi Group.

Kuang-Chi invests in disruptive innovations worldwide including technology applied to aerospace, near space exploration, internet banking as well as the security industry. Two of the group's subsidiaries are listed companies that invest in cutting-edge technology concepts that are in the development and/or initial commercialization phases.

"This joint venture confirms our strong position in the rapidly evolving biometric sector" said Kim Kristian Humborstad, CEO and founder of Zwipe. "Establishing this joint venture extends the strong cooperation with Kuang-Chi and amplifies our go-to-market strategy for our product portfolio towards the Chinese market. Our technology is currently implemented in cards, for payment, access control and government ID, and in China we see considerable interest for all three segments."

"Zwipe fits perfectly with our strategy as it has a strong technology platform that can be commercialized and scaled. In addition, they have teamed up with channel partners that are global household names. As we are in the midst of a biometric revolution, we are very excited about this joint venture and partnership with a global technology leader" said Dr. Liu Ruopeng, Chairman of Kuang-Chi.

Zwipe and Kuang-Chi will hold 49% and 51% of the joint venture, respectively. The joint venture follows Kuang-Chi's investment in Zwipe back in October 2015, where they acquired a 20% stake in the Norwegian company in addition to granting a credit facility. Via the joint venture, Kuang-Chi's investment in Zwipe technology rises to USD 8.9 million.

During 2016, Kuang-Chi has also launched the Global Community of Innovation (GCI) Network. The network brings together 17 tech companies, including Zwipe, in a wide range of industries and applications. The GCI Network will receive the full support of Kuang-Chi’s corporate resources, from sales and marketing to joint tech development. As part of this expansion, Kuang-Chi has also established a creative hub in Singapore for furthering development of it’s Future City strategy.

“Kuang-Chi invests in technologically disruptive, early to mid-stage companies and we actively support our investments around the world to ensure their success. The main purpose of the GCI Network community is to provide a platform where members can share experiences and effectively get access to our resources to scale their technologies in the Chinse market” Dr. Liu Ruopeng, founder of Kuang-Chi concluded.